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First unlimited spending, now unlimited secrecy: In a departure from their former campaign finance rhetoric--in which they argued for no limit on individual spending on elections in exchange for total transparency--conservatives have begun to cite harassment, intimidation, and a violation of First Amendment rights as reasons for increased secrecy in this practice. (Los Angeles Times)

State/Local

State lawmakers justify weaker campaign finance laws with Citizens United: An increasing number of states have started to see their election spending limits and laws fall due to the use of the Citizens United decision as precedent. (iWatch News)

California open data legislation opposed by cities: Arguing that the implementation of the plan would take up too much time and resources, the League of California Cities has spoken out against an open data bill that would make all records accessible to citizens. (TechPresident)

D.C. mayor proposes ban of political contributions by contractors: In a response to the "play to pay" culture in the city that essentially requires those looking for government contracts to donate to the appropriate campaign, D.C Mayor Vincent Gray has submitted a suite of finance reforms meant to curb this practice and others. (Washington Post)

Investigation of tax-exempt political groups started by N.Y. AG: Eric T. Schneiderman, attorney general of New York, has begun an investigation of outside, tax-exempt groups that are heavily involved with political campaigns and who do not have to disclose their donors. Schneiderman is focusing primarily on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, though other groups will fall under the scope of this investigation as well. (New York Times)

Even without Citizens United precedent, state campaign finance laws ineffective: It's not all Citizens United's fault: Campaign finance laws of states like Wisconsin, Missouri, and New York have already lacked transparency, parity, and oversight. (State Integrity Blog)

Open Data/Information

Quebec creates data directory: A portal containing 26 different data sets in a number of different data formats has been launched in Quebec City. (GovFresh)

Corrections made to rule promising public access to War in Afghanistan information: A recent bill allowing public access to information from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction has been modified to address omitted amendments meant to deal with public concerns. (Federal Register)

RELEVANT BILLS INTRODUCED

H.R. 5979: Medicaid Accountability and Care Act of 2012. Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

S. 3321: Protecting Adoption and Promoting Responsible Fatherhood Act of 2012. "Limitation on disclosure of information: No information contained in the National Responsible Father Registry shall be disclosed to any person if the disclosure of the information would contravene a national security interest of the United States or if the disclosure would compromise the confidentiality of census data." Referred to the Committee on Finance.